Hidden Away (KGI #3)(6)

“Talk,” Garrett said shortly. “The abbreviated version, if you don’t mind.”

“There is no abbreviated version of Marcus Lattimer,” Resnick said. “I don’t need to tell you all the shit he’s involved in. Or what he’s done in the past.”

“No, you damn well don’t need to tell me. He’s a goddamn traitor and the son of a bitch doesn’t deserve to live.”

“It’s personal for me too,” Resnick said softly. “But I’m not right for the job. You are.”

Garrett’s interest was solidly piqued. He had no doubt that over the years, Lattimer had pissed off a lot of people and betrayed just as many. It didn’t surprise him that the CIA had a major hard-on for him, but for Garrett, nothing else mattered but the faces of the men he’d lost on the day his team went in to rescue Lattimer.

“Why am I right for the job? You still haven’t told me how Lattimer f**ked up.”

Resnick shoved the cigarette back into his mouth and ran his hand repeatedly through his hair until it looked like he’d stuck a finger in a light socket.

“Two weeks ago, he walked into a high-rise office building in Boston. Fifteen minutes later he walked out and Allen Cross was discovered shot to death in his office. Metro surveillance captured Lattimer entering the building and fifteen minutes later leaving the same way he came in. We don’t have inside surveillance because the system was conveniently down as soon as Lattimer walked in. As an added convenience, the security guard who was on duty that night has disappeared. With his entire family.”

“Yeah, pretty damn convenient,” Garrett muttered.

“That’s a pretty big f**kup for a man like Lattimer,” Sam said. “What made Allen Cross so special that Lattimer would do the job himself?”

“That I don’t know,” Resnick admitted. “We’re still trying to connect the dots.”

“So where do I come in?” Garrett asked.

Resnick fidgeted with his cigarette and Garrett was tempted to tell him to just light the damn thing and get it over with. It wasn’t as if he didn’t already smoke like a chimney.

“I’m getting to that. Sarah Daniels, who had a prior working relationship with Allen Cross, entered the building in an agitated state not long after Lattimer went in. She ran out just a few minutes later looking like Satan himself was after her. To add to an already f**ked up situation, Stanley Cross was caught on surveillance entering the building not long before Sarah ran out. He’s the one who reported the murder after he found his brother’s body. But he denies seeing either Sarah or Lattimer.”

Garrett made a sound of disbelief. Marcus nodded. “Yeah. I figure Lattimer got to him and he’s scared shitless to say anything.”

“Think she witnessed Lattimer killing Cross?” Donovan asked.

Resnick inhaled and blew out his breath around the cigarette. “I think that not only did she see it go down, but I think she knew it was going to happen.”

“Whoa, you lost me there,” Garrett said. “That’s a hell of a stretch to make.”

Resnick held up his hand. “Sarah Daniels is a dot we haven’t been able to connect until now. Not only did she know the victim, but we believe that she has a relationship with Lattimer.”

“What kind of relationship?” Sam prompted. “You’re saying Sarah worked for Cross, was involved romantically with Lattimer and Lattimer shoots her boss?”

Resnick shook his head. “She’s Lattimer’s half sister.”

Garrett sat forward on the couch. “He doesn’t have any family. Hell, he killed his own father and then took over the old man’s business. His mother died when he was a child and he didn’t have any other siblings. I should know. I’ve looked for a way to get to that bastard for years. Even Van hasn’t come up with anything and there’s not much he can’t find.”

“We had someone undercover in Lattimer’s organization,” Resnick said. “We were this close to bringing Lattimer down when he got suspicious and my guy disappeared. I want Lattimer for this. I want him bad. Before he disappeared, my agent relayed information about Sarah. And here’s the thing. Resnick cares about her. He’s extremely protective of her. He’s gone to great lengths to keep his relationship to her secret because he doesn’t want his shit touching her. Remarkable, isn’t it? I’d have laid odds the bastard didn’t have a heart or a conscience.

“We were moving in on Sarah and setting up surveillance. I was in the process of getting wiretaps for her phone when this thing with Cross went down. We were in the same goddamn city as the bastard and he slipped through our fingers.”

Garrett rubbed absently at his shoulder as he let Resnick’s words sink in. Lattimer had a weakness. Weaknesses could be exploited.

“I want in.”

“Wait just a f**king minute, Garrett,” Sam said. “You don’t know what the job is.”

“It doesn’t matter. Whatever it is, I want in.”

Donovan frowned and shook his head “You’re not ready to go back into action yet, man. This isn’t some pansy-ass cake job we’re talking, not to mention this is way too personal for you.”

Resnick cleared his throat. “It’s actually perfect for him. It’s why I came. It’s true I know how much you hate the bastard, Garrett, and I’m certainly not above using that to my advantage. But your injury provides the perfect cover.”